Improvement in portable body-batteries



. S. J SEEL'YQ Breech-Loading Fire-Arm.

Ptented Dec.- 3, 186-1..

SAMUEL J. SEELY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN PORTABLE BODY-BATTERIES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 33,854, dated December 1861.

To all whom it may concern: I

p I, SAMUEL J. SEELY, of I the city of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a certain new and Improved Portable Battery; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view, and Fig. 2 a vertical transverse section taken'through the center of one of the barrels and through the breech and barrel plates.

My invention relates to the construction and arrangement ot'a portable battery, to be carried byafoot-soldier upon the front of his body, and to be fired from that position, or upon the breast of the horse of a cavalry-soldier, to be fired by the rider; and itconsists,first,in the attachment of a series of breech-loadin g pistolbarrels to a plate, which plate serves the'double purpose of securing the barrels of the battery in place and of protectin g the vital parts of the body of its wearer from shot; second, in the instantaneous firing of the whole number of the barrels of the battery by the firing of a single percussion cap or wafer; and, third, in the arrangement by which each adjoining barrel (after the first) is fired by the firing of the barrel preceding.

The drawings represent my invention as it is adapted to be fitted upon,carried, and operated by afoot-soldier or other person required to carry and use it.

A is a breast or body plate, made of steel plate, (for strength and lightness,) of a length and width sufficient to protect the vital parts of the body of its wearer from the efiects of shot fired at and striking against it, which, without this protection, would prove fatal. It is curved in its width to conform to, or nearly to, the curvature of the front of the body of its wearer, for the purpose of making it easier to be worn, and is padded or upholstered on its inside to protect the body of its wearer from the efi'ects of the recoil due to and pro duced by the firing of the barrels attached to it. It is supported upon the body of its wearer by a shoulder-strap, 0, attached to its upper edge and passed over the shoulders of its Be it known that wearer, and is held in position on the front of A by the standards a a, to which is strongly hinged the barrel-plate F, (to which the barrels B are attached,). and to which plate E is also secured. the series of breech-pins G, which are tapered off to an obtuse angle to fit into the breeches of the barrels, to prevent the escape of gases at that'point when the charges of the barrels are fired, so that the whole resultant force of the gases produced by the explosion of the powder of the charges in the barrels may be expended upon and to the propulsion of the balls loaded in the barrels. The barrelplate Fis curved on its outerface, so as to give to the barrel B such a divergence from a right line as will enable their charges when fired to cover a greater extent of lateral space than if the barrels were placed parallel with each other. The tops of the bars E and F are cut away on their outward edges, as shown, to allow the cap H to fit down upon and over them to hold them in place when the barrels are fired. This cap is hinged at its farther end, so that it may be turned up to allow the plate F to drop down and the barrels B to be,loaded at their breech end, and then turned down when the plateF is brought back to its place, to hold that plate securely when the barrels are fired.

At the front end of the cap H isplaced the spring-catch d, which holds it securely in place when connected to and caught in the notchin the end of the plate E, and which allows it to be raised when the spring-catch is released.

I is the nipple, upon which is placed the per cussion cap or wafer required to fire the charges in the barrels, the cap or wafer being exploded or fired by any description of lock that maybe preferred, the pin from the same being carried to the first barrel of the series by an aperture connecting the nipple and that barrel, and to the other barrels of the series by a line of 'communicating apertures made from the base of the first to the last barrels of the series, or by a similar line of communication made from breech to breech of the series of barrels. The series of barrels B are rifled in the ordinary manner, and are secured at their breech ends to the barrel-plate F by being screwed or otherwise properly secured into that plate, and are reamed out at their breech ends to fit tightly upon and over the breech-pins G, for the purpose of insuring a perfectly -tight joint between the barrels and the breech-pins, as before described.

The change in the arrangement of breastplate and straps that would be required to fit the battery to be used upon the breast of a horse or other animal, to be fired by the rider, will be so apparent that it requires no particular description.

The barrels of the battery are intended to be charged with prepared ammunition-ofpowder and ball or shot-similar to that prepared for and used with other breech-loadin g firearms, so that they can be loaded and fired with great rapidity.

The efficiency of this battery for purposes of attack and defense on land and at sea will be apparent to all persons acquainted with the subject. Suffice it to say that I believe it will be conceded to be unequaled for cheapness, simplicity, safety to its wearer and operator, and destructiveness to those upon whom it may be used by any warlike weapon of similar character now in use.

3. The combination of the breast or body plate A with the barrel-plate F, as shown, whereby the series of barrels B can be loaded readily from the breech by the wearer and operator of the battery, as described.

4. The use of the arrangement of apertures I communicating from the first to thelast of the series of barrels B, as described, by which the whole of the series of barrels are fired by the explosion of a single percussion cap or wafer, (avoiding the necessity of using a train or fuse to effect that purpose,) as set forth.

SAML. J. SEELY.

Witnesses:

FRANCIS S. Low, LAURENCE B. VALK. 

